Research shows that daylight can impact wellness by reducing illness, shortening hospital stays and leveraging Circadian Rhythms toward greater health benefit in the clinical setting and in the home. For these reasons, Solatube Daylighting Systems are making an impact on healthcare now more than ever. Here’s why this technology is helping health-conscious individuals, patients, doctors and even healthcare staff see a “new light” with improved outcomes as people illuminate interiors like never before.
What does health research say about daylight?
Did you know that natural light has health benefits that are instrumental in improving wellness? For years, doctors have known that appropriate exposure to the sun can treat skin disease, seasonal affective disorder — or “SAD” — depression while even strengthening someone’s overall immunity. While direct sunlight has risks, indoor delivery of daylight doesn’t have to. Furthermore, greater natural light during the day can help stabilize circadian rhythms, affording a host of hormone-regulated health benefits:
Benefits of restored circadian rhythms include:
- Patients experience a boosted mood. Psychologists believe that sunlight stimulates serotonin production, which promotes a positive outlook while aiding in stress-reduction and enhancing one’s mood, productivity, stamina and overall well-being.
- Patients sleep better. Sunlight triggers the brain to stop producing melatonin. This allows a person to stay more awake in the day and sleep better at night.
- These light cycles promote a healthy heart. Heart attack incidence rises around daylight savings. Researchers credit this phenomenon to increased inflammation in the body from stress-hormone production, caused by the absence of light. It’s no surprise that increased sunlight — thought to lower cholesterol, blood pressure and arterial sclerosis — is good for the heart indoors too.
- People feel an increase in energy. More light means greater energy and health in the brain. Heightening oxygen levels and triggering endorphins, daylight can enhance vitality to support concentration, endurance, muscle-development and fitness pursuits.
- Daylight helps stabilize many body processes. Derailed hunger and metabolism, weight gain and even headaches can result from disruption to natural body cycles set by the sun. By stabilizing one’s exposure to daylight, the body’s natural rhythms take over and promote enhanced wellness in these areas and more.
How can daylight help patient recovery?
In addition, researchers have found that patients recover faster when exposed to more daylight. In fact, recovery times in well-lit hospital rooms sourced by natural light came down from anywhere between 16 to 41 percent!
This type of “daylighting” has caused noticeable improvements in patients with Alzheimer’s, depression, dementia, cancer, heart disease and many others. Consequently, more hospitals, geriatric and assisted-living facilities, health-care clinics and rehab clinics are installing mechanisms to bring daylight in.
Discover new options to deliver natural light safely.
Although harsh, interior lighting can cause an excessive transfer of heat and harmful UV exposure, lighting rooms through tubular daylight devices (TDDs) rather than windows can harness wellness-benefit while eliminating these negative side effects.
Furthermore, experts have proven that safely filtering daylight into healthcare facilities improves staff performance and job satisfaction, making work environments better places too.
How do Solatube daylighting systems work for healthcare?
Solatube Daylighting Systems re-route daylight from outside and bring it inside. Highly efficient and customizable to a facility’s needs, they promote wellness gained through natural light via highly reflective, tubular-daylight devices. Plus, they also reduce the need for electric lighting during the day, decreasing the footprint left on our environment. People can install this type of lighting anywhere because they don’t require extreme structural adaptations, and they’re economical and efficient.
What’s the bottom line?
Humans have innate connections to nature that restore the body’s natural rhythms toward wellness, connecting us to what’s green. Studies have shown even minimal contact with nature reduces stress, lessens anger, minimizes fear and heightens happiness. Imagine what a day of natural light can really do for someone – whether they are healing or just trying to live a better life.
